distance

I am the type who do not tell everyone else that a person is my close/best friend, not even when I strongly feel that s/he is. In a friend-friend relationship, I always hedged from admitting unless they other one already admitted that s/he is my close/best friend.

Just an opinion though:
it's always good to play safe in this kind of relationship.
Saves your face when you find out the other friend do not think of you as highly as how you think of him/her; or feel that you do not mean as much to him/her as s/he to you. you will never really know... really

Well, save that we do naturally have close friends, it disappoints you they fail to go along with your ideals. The more you know a person, and the more you find out that s/he does not fit your personality, the more unpleasant feeling you'll take in. Tell me about it, that it's not how the personalities can fit one another but it's up to how you can accept a person as who s/he is? Plain baloney. It takes two different hands to clap.

I think these problems: unknown distance that grows overtime, or fading friendship, and ability for acceptance are the very underlying bases of human as a social being to find a mate, other than to make love:

Because the other mate will be the most perfect friend for you.

Let's hope I can really find one, this life.